Winged Falls

//Chapter Twelve//

Mason wasn't the only one mentally smacking himself. As Mabel led Dipper into the forest, her mind screamed a cacophony of warnings at her: What are you doing? it said. You're not ready! it warned. Deciding that you would tell him didn't mean doing it the next day!

But, for better or for worse, Mabel wasn't thinking with her mind. Maybe she hadn't planned on showing Dipper her wings right away, and maybe her heart felt like it might pound its way right out of her chest, but she had acted on instinct back on the edge of the forest. Now she just had to trust that that instinct had been the right one.

Several minutes passed before Dipper broke the silence. "Hey, is this the area where I met you that first time?"

Surprised, Mabel paid more attention to her surroundings. Dipper was right; she recognized this place. Her feet must have unconsciously led her to the clearing she'd lived in for her first week in Gravity Falls.

They were fairly deep into the forest now, Mabel knew. No one would be likely to stumble upon them, and it being the same spot where they'd first met was—well, Mabel was choosing to take it as a good sign. It was the perfect opportunity to show Dipper her wings and tell him the truth. All it would take was one simple motion: sliding her sweater over her head. She could do that, right? Easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy. A piece of cake! As easy as pie! Mabel tried to think of another food-related phrase to explain how easy this would be, fully aware that she was stalling herself.

Dipper looked at her. "So, um—what did you want to show me?"

"I—" Mabel felt like a statue. This was it; there would be no turning back after this. Either Dipper believed her, or— or he'd reject her. The confidence Mabel had the night before suddenly seemed much more fragile in the light of the day and her fears.

Don't do it, a voice in her head said, one that sounded an awful lot like Lilith Crypt. It isn't worth the risk.

But another voice spoke over it. "Whatever it is, you can trust me, Mabel," Dipper said. Mabel looked up, and he gave her an encouraging smile. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but—"

Mabel took a breath and closed her eyes. He's still my brother, he's still my brother, her mind repeated, a mantra of encouragement.

She pulled her sweater over her head to reveal an ordinary pink t-shirt and a pair of extraordinary lilac wings.

***

Mason couldn't help but gape, slack-jawed, at Mabel—specifically, at the white and lilac feathers sprouting out of her back. "You—you have wings!" Just like Wendy, his mind added. Was Mabel somehow half bird?

Mabel's cheeks flushed, and her wings fluttered on her back. "Y-yeah, I do."

"That's why you didn't want to tell us where you came from," Mason said, eyes widening with realization. He started pacing back and forth. "You didn't want us to know about your wings!"

"I— kinda, yeah." Mabel's fingers twitched nervously. "So you're not— I dunno— weirded out by this?"

"Are you kidding me?" Mason stopped pacing and leaned forward to get a closer look at the feathery wings; they were different from Wendy's in both structure and appearance. "This is so cool! Are you, like, half bird or something?"

It was as if a weight had been lifted from Mabel's shoulders; she straightened and, for the first time since entering the woods, started to smile. "No, I— I'm an Avem. We're pretty similar to humans, but we have wings and magic."

"You can do magic? That's awesome!" Mason paused as a thought came to him. "Why hasn't anyone ever seen any other Avem? Do you guys only live in Gravity Falls, like the other stuff here? Do Stan and Ford know about you?"